Directions Hearings, Conciliation Conferences, Interim Hearings, Child Dispute Conferences, Procedural Conference, Special Appointment, Children’s Case Assess List, Child Related Hearing List….
With all these different types of Hearing lists, it is no wonder there is confusion about what each of them mean.
If it is any constellation, experienced family law practitioners are also confused by the various names of different types of Court Hearings.
What is Case Assessment Conference?
The purpose of this article is to assist you in understanding a Court event, known as a Case Assessment Conference. A Case Assessment Conference (“CAC”) is not a Court Hearing, it is a conference that takes place outside of the Court room, and in a conference room which located at the Family Court.
A CAC is designed to be a risk assessment tool in parenting proceedings, run as a conference by a Family Consultant. A CAC is allocated to a parenting matter after Family Court proceedings have been commenced (in other words, someone has filed an application in the Family Court).
A CAC is usually allocated for the purposes of assisting the Court to have information in relation to risk assessment or safety issues for children in Family Court proceedings. Allocation of a CAC is a discretionary matter made by Order of your relevant Judicial Officer at the first Court Hearing you attend.
Sometimes you will receive your CAC date from the Judicial Officer when you are in the Court Hearing, or otherwise the Court will write to you via the eCourts Portal to advise you, or your lawyer of the date.
Each CAC is allocated two-hours in length, which is generally intended to be divided one hour each, provided that there are two parties to the CAC.
A Family Consultant is not a lawyer, they are usually qualified psychologists, or social workers who have training in family law matters. The Family Consultant does not have the capacity to make Orders in the way that a Judicial Officer may be able. The purpose of a Family Consultant is to prepare a report based on their interviews with he parties to assist the Court, and the extent of their role is to make recommendations to the Court based on their knowledge and experience.
What does a CAC Involve
The Family Consultant conducts separate interviews with you and the other party, usually commencing with the Applicant being the person who first filed Family Court proceedings. There are, however, no specific rules in this regard and the decision is up to the family Consultant.
At the commencement of the CAC, the Family Consultant informs the parties that everything said during the CAC is reportable to the Judicial Officer and may form evidence during Court proceedings. In this respect it is important to know that nothing that is said in a CAC is confidential.
There is no specific form in which the Family Consultant conducts their interview, and no two Case Assessment Conference Reports will be the same, due to the different nature of every family circumstance.
Third parties are generally not interviewed, unless there is a specific reason to do so. as The primary purpose of the Family Consultant is to speak to each party separately to understand the background of the matter, act as a screening tool for risk and safety issues and make proposals as to next steps in the matter.
What Does the Family Consultant want to know about?
There is a general form of questions that the Family Consultant will tend to ask the parties, however, can take any form depending on the circumstances.
These include: –
- What are the current arrangements for the children and details of brief history to the extent that it is relevant.
- Whether the Department of Communities (“DOC”) has been involved with your family. If the department has been involved, and necessary steps taken, the DOC may provide a short memorandum to the Family Consultant, outlining the nature of the involvement of the DOC.
- Whether there are any health/developmental needs of the children.
- Whether there are concerns of harm, risk, or safety issues to the children.
- Whether there are issues of drug or alcohol abuse.
- Occasionally, there is comment on the relationship dynamics/parenting relationship.
- The parties’ proposals.
- An overall assessment of the matter.
Case Consultant Recommendations
The Family Consultant usually gives suggestions to the Court about what might help the Court to resolve or assist in the resolution of the dispute.
This can take a varying form of recommendations, including things like:-
- Alternative dispute resolution, or a form of mediation;
- Suggestions as to how the children might spend time with each party (for example, supervised handovers);
- Completion of parenting courses, or programs, such as those relating to drug and alcohol rehabilitation, or family and domestic violence;
- allocation of an Independent Children’s Lawyer; and
- appointment of a Single Expert Witness;
- They may make recommendations for further information to assist the Court. This generally includes obtaining documents bout the children’s medical and education history, or the parties criminal history;
- Restraining parties from doing certain acts or things. For example, they may recommend that the parties do not talk about the proceedings in front of the children or consume alcohol or illicit drugs while the children are in their care;
- Suggesting requirement of judicial decision by a Judicial Officer.
What happens after the CAC?
Usually there is Court date scheduled for a relatively short time after the CAC, at which time the report is provided to the Judicial Offer and considered by them at the Court Hearing.
Generally, the parties receive a copy of the report before the Hearing, and on many occasions parties will reach an agreement by consent, based on the recommendation of the Family Consultant.
You should be aware that you cannot provide the CAC report to third parties.
If you would like any further information, please do not hesitate to contact Bowen Buchbinder Vilensky.
